Aims of the Federation

The Federation of Cumbria Commoners was set up in early 2003 to be a representative voice to support and protect the commoners (people who have registered rights to graze livestock on common land) of Cumbria.

Our overall aim is to maintain and improve the viability of hill farming on common land. Our objectives are:

To represent the views of commoners to decision makers in Natural England, Defra and other relevant government departments and agencies

To provide and update members with information on current issues affecting commons

To support better collaboration amongst commoners

To educate policy makers and the general public about commons and commoning

We are a membership organisation and are open to all Commons Associations and commoners in Cumbria. We also have affiliate members who are members of Commons Associations in Lancashire and Northumberland.

We currently have nearly 700 members. We have a constitution and our Committee is made up of representatives from the 10 Commons groups in Cumbria (click to see map), 2 representatives from Lancashire and 1 from Northumberland to ensure that the Federation is rooted in the local practices of each area. We also have co-opted committee members.